House Sanguinar
|image=HouseSanguinarFlag.jpg |name = House Sanguinar}} House Sanguinar is a noble house of the Gilnean Nobility. Situated on the island of Talonpeak off the coast of Gilneas. The house is led by its Countess Kezia Sanguinar and her husband, Dantias Elden-Sanguinar. History Lucien I House Sanguinar was founded by Lucien Von Sanguinar, a High Elf who left Quel'Thalas after the High Elves had established an alliance with the humans. He made his way to Gilneas and landed upon the rocky shores of Talonpeak, he had discovered the trapped body of a colossal bat who declared himself a god and introduced himself as Ac'dural. He offered to give Lucien a chance at greatness and even a way to create a font of power like the Sunwell which Lucien's people had grown addicted to. Lucien accepted the bargain with so called "god" and marked the land as his own. Settling there with the Quel'dorei who followed him there. Officially naming the land Falore'Danil (Midnight Peak). As the years passed the magic Ac'dural had offered them had begun to alter them, and their devotion to him had grown. Over time they had developed silver eyes and their canines had grown into large fangs. Lucien's devotion to his new god turned into a fully fledged cult and the ritual that sated his hunger became part of their cults yearly routine. As the years passed the Gilneans discovered Falore'Danil and demanded that Lucien abandon the lands that rightfully belonged to them. Lucien denied their demands and a war broke out between them. The war was long faught thanks to the tactical superiority of the island, but eventually it died down into a stalemate. A few years after it had begun a sole Gilnean woman came to their shores, she was quickly arrested and imprisoned as a spy, however Lucien was intrigued by her bravado and went to meet her. The woman's name was Lydia Blackbrier, a young noble within the Gilnean Court. She admitted to him that she had heard stories of him and wished to meet him first hand. As time passed the hostilities between the Sanguinars and the Blackbriers rose and tensions began getting high once more with the Gilneans sending out parties to raid Falore'Danil to attempt to reclaim Lydia. Meanwhile, Lucien and Lydia had grown fond of eachother and eventually Lucien allowed Lydia to leave, as he had become certain of her true intentions. Lucien eventually went to meet the ruler of Gilneas and after negitiations were made the Sanguinars and Gilneans were no longer at war and Lucien had become a part of the Gilnean nobility, on the agreement that he marry one of their nobles. He married Lydia and Falore'Danil was renamed to Nuilase'Danil (Claw or Talon Peak). Lucien II Lucien and Lydias son, Lucien II eventually became the leader of the House after Lucien was assassinated. After investigations had discovered the culprit was House Darcorus a civil war had begun, leaving Count Lucien II without a proper heir. His wife had a daughter however, and Lucien II declared that women of House Sanguinar were permited to lead the House without rite of marriage and after he died on the battlefield his daughter became the head of the house. Marcus Count Marcus Sanguinar was the last head of House Sanguinar before the House's downfall, the treachery of House Darcorus had not ended all those years ago and despite their relations being well on the outside, on the inside they had plans to eradicate the house entirely. In a single night Talonpeak was overrun by soldiers of Darcorus and many of the inhabitants fled Talonpeak as Marcus and the Talonguard had sealed Ac'durals chambers and lead Marcus II to saftey before Marcus himself had perished. Kezia Marcus II lived out his life as a farmer, having a wife and three children before the spies of House Darcorus found them. They killed Marcus II and his wife and sold the children off as slaves. Their children, Kezia, Lucien and Lillie spent their childhood in bondage, serving the whims of their slavers before Lucien had decided that enough was enough and plotted an escape. While successful in getting Kezia safely out of the compound, Lucien and Lillie, Kezias older siblings were killed during the escape. Lucien had told her stories that their father told him about their once great house and Kezia went on a quest to reclaim it. She joined with a noble house of the Alliance and met Dantias who quickly became infatuated with her, eventually their passion grew into love and they had children of their own, Elizabeth, Vaelyndra and Lucien II (in honour of her brother). After a year of gathering support, they began the journey back to Gilneas, setting sail to Talonpeak to reclaim and rebuild the ruins. As if history repeated itself however, House Darcorus attempted to kill Kezia and her family. This time it was a failure and the retribution was neigh. They gathered their supporters and after declaring her nobility in the Gilnean Court they had resumed their feud with House Darcorus and this time, claimed vengeance for their fallen. Avanging so many of Kezia's ancestors and removing their greatest foe from the board. They settled there and rebuilt for some time, taking the time to raise their children and mend the wounds of the past. Kezia soon heard word that her sister had a child while in slavery and tracked her former slavers down and ended them, collecting her lost niece Exandria in the process, raising her as her own daughter. When the undead descended upon them they were able to hold their ground and maintain their lands thanks to the tactical advantages the island gave them. Safe as well from the worgen curse. They held their lands for some time before recently, the undead attacked once more, this time having planned for their tactical advantage. The island was overrun and once more the inhabitants fled, though this time thanks to the thinking of Exandria they had an established escape route and suffered minimal losses. Now, they stay in Kul'tiras working with The Grey Templars to reclaim Gilneas and Talonpeak. The Moonlight Order The Moonlight Order (or The Order of Elore'alah) was founded many many years ago by the first Sanguinar to become Gilnean nobility. Legend says that Count Lucien Von Sanguinar, first of his name discovered the first nest of Vampire bats on the island of Talonpeak. It is said that in his sleep he was visited by the spectral visage of a colossal bat named Ac'dural, who in return for Luciens kindness towards the deadly bats imparted his knowledge to him. Thus creating the cult and situating the Sanguinar family on the island for years to come. The cult practices the Light as well as Alchemy, viewing themselves as keepers of forbidden knowledge they even have some texts in their libraries about the void, necromancy and fel magic, though they do not practice them. More focusing on hemomancy then anything else as a kind of soothing magic to help their health through blood manipulation. Some Talonpeak philosophers had suggested their god may be trying to get them to practice the darker magics for a dark purpose while others see the god as a benevolent creature of the light, like the Naaru. One of the unique practices of the Cult is their order of paladins called the Order of the Talon. These warriors train excruciatingly hard to put their bodies into peak physical condition while honing their minds with the scriptures and practices of Ac'dural. One of the gifts of Ac'dural was his bats who had grown immensely since their arrival, now they would serve the Sanguinars and all who follow his teachings. Talonguard, like all paladins learn the powers of the Light, however their devotion to their god has lent them the unique mindset of fanatics and the teachings of darker magics. Gifts of Ac'dural Bond: One of the practices of the religion with the gift of Ac'dural is to find a Bloodwing to bond to, they bind to you spiritually which allows you to feel their emotions and commune with them, revealing their higher intelligence. ' '''Hemomancy:' Ac'dural's teachings do not go so far as to create a monster out of you, instead opting to teach lightly on Hemomancy. Giving you the ability to sooth creatures and people with altering their bloodflow gently, or to slow down a persons pulse to near impercievabile. Another Hemomancy power that is taught is to manipulate blood outside the body to move it around and launch it like a projectile. Light: Talonguard are all taught the same Light-based abilities taught by the Church of the Light. Ac'durals Steel: The metal of Talonpeak is a unique Obsidian forged in the lavapit by the Sanguinar Manor. The obsidian is much less fragile then common Obsidian allowing it to be used for the armor of the Talonguard and their weapons. Allowing them to have strong armor and weapons sharp enough to cut through a rock given enough pressure. Talonpeak Talonpeak is a land always cast in shadow the light of the sun barely reaches it as there is a constant storm about. The storm ranges from a light drizzle to a storm so powerful the residents take shelter in their homes which have all been designed specifically to withstand such events. The island has channels that allow the flooding waters to seep through the ground and funnel back into the ocean, it is unknown what causes the constant storm though some Gilneans say it is a blight on the Sanguinar house. The style of structure is classic Sanguinar design, as Kezia used the old ruins to reconstruct the castle as well as the town. Utilizing the old ruins and the Gilneans new designs she was able to develop a unique style. Talonpeak is surrounded by water at all sides, some edge over the cliffs while others have a rocky beachfront. The people of Talonpeak had created a single dock for traders and visitors, creating a funnel which annoyed their traders, yet provided them the edge in case of invasion. The water is nearly always in motion, never still from the storm however there are various locations on the island, grottoes where the citizens can swim peacefully. Talonpeak has the wildlife commonly associated with the mainland, however they are fewer and far between. There are also ravenous sharks and Crocolisks who dwell in the ocean waiting to pick off any who dare jump into the waters. As well as legends of an even deadlier creature... The resources of Talonpeak are fairly common minerals and spices, however they possess a unique herb native only to Talonpeak as far as is known; a plant called “Transylvae” and its effects can range from euphoria to lust. It was often used in love potions. They also possess a small volcanic magma which helps them create the metal known as Ac'durals Steel, however they do not have enough of it to sell as they use most if not all of it on armaments for the Talonguard. While Talonpeak is full of people, their population overall is nearly all in poverty. Most people make do with what they have, while others turn to a life of crime or join The Cult of the Chiroptera for the benefits it bestows. The peasants live a simple life of fishing, light farming and trade. While early in Kezias rule there was prosperity, the invasion of Gilneas had left Talonpeak as a location for some of those who fled. The people, despite their aesthetic were welcoming as they themselves were from the mainland. They live a bit harsher then they'd wish, but the gentle smile of their Lady Elizabeth Sanguinar every day brings them hope for the future. The upper class of Dominus, Nobiles, Ladys and Gentlemen are the wealthy of Talonpeak, most are from either Gilneas or Lordaeron while some are even from Arathi. They provide most of the wealth to the Countess as their funding helped build Talonpeak back up and it is their funding that keeps it functioning. Commonly the Order of the Talon accepts mages and teaches them arcane, alchemy as well as hemomancy. The mages are all from the common folk who discovered they had an affinity for magic. While their mages aren't world renowned they have produced quality mages. OOC Notes Vampires? While there is could be a very sound argument to say that the Sanguinars are vampires, they most certainly are not. At least not in the traditional or canonical sense. They are close to being vampires for sure, what with their aesthetic and religious practice as well as the bat motif. However, they are not vampires (or vampyr), they have been and remain a living house. Maybe in the future should the lore allow it I might consider making the final step in turning them into vampires, but for now they are not. Just very heavily vampire-inspired to contrast their worgen counterparts in Gilneas-proper.Category:Article management templates